Understand Islam To See The Truth

April 03, 1989|By Elizabeth Ann Martin.

CHICAGO — Professor Louis Rene Beres` recent article, ``Palestine and Iran`s long arm,`` is a thoughtful analysis of the author`s preconceptions concerning the problems of the Middle East. However, it has little to do with Palestine, Iran or Islam.

The author asserts that the originally ``secular`` intifada ``is changing quietly, and a growing movement within the rebellion already is looking toward Tehran.`` This may well be the case-when Israeli soldiers are gathered northeast of stone-throwing teenagers. But viewing the professor`s statement in a more metaphorical light, one must wonder if he paid close attention to the events of the last year at all.

The intifada, from its very beginnings, had a distinctive Islamic flavor. Demonstrators in Gaza weren`t pouring out of political coffee houses shouting PLO slogans, but out of mosques crying, ``God is greatest.`` Indeed, the nationalist PLO had to do some fast catching up to gain even the appearance of having some connection with the uprising.

I sadly suspect the ephemeral ``Iranian Connection`` is a cynical attempt to cash in on the present worldwide Rushdie hysteria. Could it be that the professor is trying to discourage conscientious Americans from reconsidering unquestioned U.S. commitment to Israel by employing Ayatollah-hiding-under-your-bed scare tactics?

It is high time that the media and their squadron of ``experts`` on Islam give up the ghost of their decade-old warning of Iran`s revolution being exported. The Shiite government in Iran is obviously experiencing a revolutionary trade deficit. It is absolutely unfounded to even suspect that the solidly Sunni Moslem groups of Palestine are taking any directions from Tehran. It would, in fact, be laughable thinking were it not so misleading.

This whole business of continually raising the specter of Khomeini and wildly bearded, blood-thirsty ``foreigners`` terrorizing the world to its knees smacks of what has become all-too-acceptable Moslem-bashing.

Take the Rushdie affair. Moslem leaders and scholars from North America, Britain, Egypt and even, Professor Beres, those ``fundamentalists`` you so fear in Jerusalem have stated their disagreement on Islamic juristic grounds with Khomeini`s death sentence.

Still you use the actions of one government-which speaks for 4 percent of the nearly 1 billion Moslems of the world-to condemn any person, group or movement that dares to align or guide itself in any way with a respected, monotheistic, Abrahamic religion of revelation, which from its inception has never ceased to win the hearts of people.

There is nothing to be gained from fearing Islam, but so much from trying to understand it. The Crusades are over. It is time to start giving Islam and Moslems a fair shake.